By Moe Notkin, Sideline Reporter
Allderdice came into the City League semifinals the No. 1 seed against a fourth-seeded Schenley team. During the regular season, the two teams split the series 1-1. The winner of Tuesday's game would advance to the City League Championship on Thursday at 6:00 p.m. at Duquesne University's A.J. Palumbo Center.
Playing at a neutral court, it was supposed to be a fair game crowd-wise, but Allderdice's fans definitely brought their "A" game, cheering their hearts out before the opening tip had arrived. The game started with an 8 to 2 lead by the Dragons. This lead to the Dragons continously playing their "Hawk D" to finish the first quarter with a score of 15 to 7.
1st HALF HIGHLIGHTS
For every time Schenley would come up with a stop, they would only score half the time, playing a first half with horrible shot percentage as well as shot selection. On the other hand, the Dragons came up with points in the paint, long range three-pointers and routinely hit their free-throws. The Dragons lead 30-19 at the half.
HALFTIME SHOW: ALLDERDICE DANCE CREW
As the second half began, both sides were clearly amped up and ready to either pave their way to the championship, or start driving home. The Dragons, clearly in charge of the game early, began to stray away from their successful first half play, giving Schenley more opportunities for takeaways and easy points. By the end of the third quarter, the score was 42 to 29 in favor of the Dragons. Still, the game, even though it was seemingly in the Dragons' hands, was much closer than anyone could have thought.
2nd HALF HIGHLIGHTS
As the fourth quarter progressed, Schenley trailed by 11 and seemed to be playing a more up-tempo, full-court press defense, as well as a faster-paced, quick-shot offense. The Dragons had some trouble keeping up, allowing the Spartans to cut the lead down to six with just one minute left in the game. It came down to the free throw line, and with seven free throws made, the game was set in stone as the Dragons pulled away 64-53 in a contest that was much closer than it should have been.
ALLDERDICE POSTGAME INTERVIEWS
After the game, the Dragons celebrated their victory with chants of "Hawk D" and "Allderdice Dragons". High School Playbook Moe Notkin spoke with three of the Dragons' seniors after the game. Senior Will Clarke xpressed his gratitude to his coaching staff and great team around him for taking him to the championship in his senior year. Look for the Dragons to face-off against Perry (who beat Oliver Tuesday 68 to 56) this Thursday.
